After wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park, cougars — that had only regained a foothold a few decades earlier — were able to coexist due to their diets changing and the varied landscape of the park, according to new research.
Run-ins between wolves (Canis lupus) and cougars (Puma concolor, also called mountain lions and pumas) in Yellowstone National Park happen when wolves steal prey from — and sometimes kill — cougars, and this dynamic becomes more harmonious when cougars shift to eating smaller prey, according to a new study published Jan. 26 in the journal PNAS. Successful wolf and cougar coexistence in Yellowstone, the findings suggest, depends more on the diversity of prey and the availability of escape terrain for cougars than it does on the overall abundance of prey.
